Dena Gassner

The hardest thing was that if you're female, you're not autistic because it's very, very rare.

I was misdiagnosed with bipolar.

Oh, wow.

And that is not uncommon.

Bipolar and personality conditions are often diagnosed in autistic women before they get their right diagnosis.

And the problem with that is the medications that come with that.

Oh, I was completely dysfunctional.

You know, I could not, I just wasn't a human being for that timeframe.

And so I finally found a doctor who was actually treating my children who said, I think you might want to reevaluate where you are.

And he saved my life.

Gosh.

I think it's fantastic.

I was seeing that mothers of autistic kids were often abandoned by their girlfriend network.

And we need nurturing.

And we need community.

And so I started a group called Margarita Moms.

And we drank margaritas and we went to see Magic Mike.

And, you know, and our rule was you're not allowed to talk about your child, but you can talk about your undiagnosed husband, you know.

And, you know, and we had fun.

And so we're seeing this rising demand.